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Our Genealogy Helper

Introduction ...

We have a couple of goals for our Gazetteer:

  • That it be a tool which helps us with planning our trips.
  • We're trying to shape our Gazetteer as a tool to help us understand the community in which our ancestors lived, the community that was part of their daily lives.
  • On our trips, we try to visit those places where our ancestors left their footprints.

By learning about Dalton (and the surrounding area) during the time that our ancestors lived, we hope to have a better understanding of both their community and its relationship to their lifes. We hope that this tool helps to give us an insight into their world.

As we add data and organize our Gazetteer to help with our family research, we will be adding to this our Genealogical Helper for Dalton. While we don't have information that is specific to any given person or family, we intend to expand our understanding about where and how people lived.

Neighboring Counties ...

When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring counties.

For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the west. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the south.

So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring counties instead of the county in which they lived:  their home county contained property and probate records; the county to the west contained birth and death records; the county to the south contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring counties, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.

If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.

Dalton is located in Muskegon County.

To see how the shape of Michigan's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Muskegon County: Kent, Newaygo, Oceana & Ottawa.

Below are the counties that are near Dalton. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Dalton:

  • Muskegon County     (The home county of Dalton)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dalton, with the one closest to Dalton listed first.
    • Lakewood Club
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lakewood Club have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakewood Club
      • Lakewood Club is located in Muskegon County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,292 people
    • North Muskegon
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Twin Lake
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Muskegon
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Whitehall
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Muskegon Heights
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Montague
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Montague have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montague
      • Montague is located in Muskegon County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,365 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Montague <2>
    • Sylvan Beach
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Wabaningo
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wabaningo have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wabaningo
      • Wabaningo is located in Muskegon County
    • Roosevelt Park
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Wolf Lake
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wolf Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolf Lake
      • Wolf Lake is located in Muskegon County
    • Norton Shores
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Norton Shores have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norton Shores
      • Norton Shores is located in Muskegon County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 24,623 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Norton Shores <2>
    • Holton
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Holton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holton
      • Holton is located in Muskegon County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Holton <2>
  • Kent County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dalton, with the one closest to Dalton listed first.
    • Casnovia
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Casnovia have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Casnovia
      • Casnovia is located in Kent County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 320 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Casnovia <2>
    • Kent City
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kent City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kent City
      • Kent City is located in Kent County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,212 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Kent City <2>
    • Lisbon
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Lisbon. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lisbon
      • Lisbon is located in Kent County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Lisbon
      • From Dalton to Lisbon
    • Sparta
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
  • Newaygo County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dalton, with the one closest to Dalton listed first.
    • Sitka
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Sitka. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sitka
      • Sitka is located in Newaygo County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Sitka
      • From Dalton to Sitka
    • Brookside
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Brookside. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookside
      • Brookside is located in Newaygo County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Brookside
      • From Dalton to Brookside
    • Reeman
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Bridgeton
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Fremont
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fremont have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fremont
      • Fremont is located in Newaygo County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,102 people
      • Former name for Fremont:
      • Fremont Center
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fremont <2>
    • Bishop
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Ashland
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Ashland. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashland
      • Ashland is located in Newaygo County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Ashland
      • From Dalton to Ashland
    • Grant
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Wooster
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Wooster. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wooster
      • Wooster is located in Newaygo County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Wooster
      • From Dalton to Wooster
    • Newaygo
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Newaygo have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newaygo
      • Newaygo is located in Newaygo County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,099 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Newaygo <2>
    • Aetna
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Huber
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Sun
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Sun. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sun
      • Sun is located in Newaygo County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Sun
      • From Dalton to Sun
  • Oceana County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dalton, with the one closest to Dalton listed first.
    • Rothbury
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • New Era
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Era have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Era
      • New Era is located in Oceana County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 440 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for New Era <2>
    • Ferry
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • Camp Claybanks ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Shelby
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Hesperia
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hesperia have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hesperia
      • Hesperia is located in Oceana County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 936 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hesperia <2>
    • Cobmoosa
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Cobmoosa. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cobmoosa
      • Cobmoosa is located in Oceana County
      • Cobmoosa has also been known as:
      • Cob Moo Sa
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Cobmoosa
      • From Dalton to Cobmoosa
    • Elbridge
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Elbridge. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elbridge
      • Elbridge is located in Oceana County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Elbridge
      • From Dalton to Elbridge
    • Hart
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hart have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hart
      • Hart is located in Oceana County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,089 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hart <2>
    • Mears
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Walkerville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
  • Ottawa County

For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Dalton, see our County-by-County Page for Dalton.

Cemeteries Near Dalton ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Dalton.

This is a new section and is likely to have errors. If you find an error, such as a missing cemetery or we have the wrong name, please let us know. If you know of them, we would also appreciate learning about previous or alternate names.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Dalton covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Dalton, with the one closest to Dalton listed first.

  • Fruitland Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fruitland Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Fruitland Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Oakland Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oakland Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oakland Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bear Lake Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bear Lake Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bear Lake Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Laketon Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Laketon Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Laketon Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Oak Hill Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oak Hill Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oak Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Old Sprague Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Old Sprague Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Old Sprague Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Indian Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Indian Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Indian Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Twin Lake Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Twin Lake Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Twin Lake Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. Marys Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Marys Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Marys Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Evergreen Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Oakwood Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Restlawn Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (140 more) ...
    • Shady Rest Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Shady Rest Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Shady Rest Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Forest Home Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Forest Home Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Forest Home Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2524538 <4>
    • Horton Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Horton Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Horton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.

Nearby Communities in 1895 ...

We've built the following list with information that came from an Atlas published by Rand McNally in 1895. The Atlas had details such as the population of the community (which appears to have come from the 1890 Census) and whether there was a post office and/or railroad service available. We also indicate if the community no longer exists and is now historic.<5>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Dalton had a population of 50 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service.

These communities are listed based on their distance from Dalton, with the one closest to Dalton listed first.

  • North Muskegon
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Muskegon
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Twin Lake
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Muskegon Heights
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Whitehall
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Montague
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Montague have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montague
    • Montague is located in Muskegon County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,365 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Montague <2>
  • Cloverville
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cloverville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cloverville
    • Cloverville is located in Muskegon County
  • Holton
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Holton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holton
    • Holton is located in Muskegon County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Holton <2>
  • Rothbury
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
  • Sullivan
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Fruitport
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fruitport have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fruitport
    • Fruitport is located in Muskegon County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,165 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fruitport <2>
  • Moorland
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Moorland have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moorland
    • Moorland is located in Muskegon County
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Brookside
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Brookside. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookside
      • Brookside is located in Newaygo County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Brookside
      • From Dalton to Brookside
    • Ferrysburg
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ferrysburg have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ferrysburg
      • Ferrysburg is located in Ottawa County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,022 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ferrysburg <2>
    • Bridgeton
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)

We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Dalton. See our List of 1890's Communities around Dalton.

Newspapers Published in Dalton ...

An ongoing effort between the Library of Congress and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has resulted in the National Digital Newspaper Program (NDNP).

To share their results, the partnership has created the Chronicling America website. The goal of this partnership is to assemble a database about the current and historic newspapers of the United States. This includes a growing collection of scanned images from selected papers. All of it available to the public on their website.

Using information that we've taken from the Chronicling America website, we've identified 117 newspapers that have been published in the area around Dalton.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Dalton, there are papers which were published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<6>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Dalton.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first visit the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These websites offer the information directly or else point to where you can find it. Their information is open to everyone.

To help you get started, the following links will take you to the pages that are relevant to Dalton:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Dalton. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Muskegon County: www.co.muskegon.mi.us/

The official website for State of Michigan: https://www.michigan.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<4>The Find-a-Grave website is an excellent research tool with information about a cemetery's location and interments. They also offer a forum for their members which can provide additional help. More information about Find-a-Grave can be found on their website: findagrave.com.
<5>We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about Dalton, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Dalton) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Dalton. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 43.3180, Longitude: -86.2615    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025